Chapter 263: Are All Brothers

"He Haiqin, who told you about this?"

He Haiqin said blankly, "It's news from the Lu family."

He Yuxiu waved a hand. "You believe news from the Lu family? This is clearly an attempt to sow discord!"

He Haiqin looked at He Yuxiu. "The Lu family doesn't fabricate things out of thin air. I'm definitely going to investigate this thoroughly."

He Yuxiu stroked her chin, pondering for a long time. "First, let Third Brother go to Yuezhou and check. I watched Jiaqing grow up; he's an honest boy. How could he possibly deceive you?"

"No need for Third Brother to go!" He Haiqin stood up. "I've already had someone buy train tickets. I'm going to Waizhou myself. I'll go see if it's really him lying in the hospital!"

"Haiqin, you can't act recklessly. You're the head of the He family. If you go to Waizhou, imagine the commotion that would cause!"

The commotion truly escalated. He Yuxiu couldn't stop He Haiqin. The next day, He Haiqin boarded the train to Waizhou.

Zhengjing Village was abuzz with activity. The third installment of "Blood-Gun Detective" was nearing completion. Ma Wu was taking the crew around, scouting locations and reshooting key scenes. Li Banfeng went to Greenwater City to prepare for promotions and ticket sales.

Cinemas everywhere were eagerly waiting. Li Banfeng didn't even need to call; reporters from major newspapers actively sought him out. He found it inconvenient to make public appearances, so he left everything to his subordinates. The buzz was evident from the newspapers, where news related to "Blood-Gun Detective" occupied most of the front page.

Besides "Blood-Gun Detective," there was another important piece of news: The eldest son of the He family was reportedly sighted in Puluozhou.

This news wasn't in every newspaper; the Ling family's paper didn't mention a word, while the Lu family's paper extensively covered it. Li Banfeng read the news carefully. The general content stated that He Jiaqing had impersonated the famous movie star Zhou Changhong and was recognized by an acquaintance in Greenwater City.

Who was this acquaintance? Li Banfeng set that question aside for the moment. A chill ran down his spine.

He had initially boarded the train to Wuqin Township with the aim of following Zhou Changhong and discovering the mastermind behind the Ling family. It now seemed that the Zhou Changhong he had seen back then was He Jiaqing. What would have happened if I had truly gotten off at Wuqin Township? At the time, Zhou Changhong seemed to have used a Foolish Cultivation Skill on me, which made me feel conflicted for almost the entire journey on the train. There were two remaining inheritors of the Foolish Cultivation technique; could He Jiaqing be the other one? Was he luring me to get off at Wuqin Township to attack me? Did he want the Bronze Lotus back? If I didn't give it to him, would he kill me? Even if I did give it to him, would he let me go? It was a matter of life and death, truly a hair's breadth from death. Fortunately, I used the Judge's Brush to break the deadlock and got off at Jianren Gang.

Li Banfeng drank a glass of wine, letting his emotions gradually calm down, then continued browsing related news. There was a lot of news related to He Jiaqing. How did he cause such a stir just by returning for a visit? After reading other news, Li Banfeng noticed a pattern. In the Lu family's newspapers, the related news commentary primarily aimed to clarify one thing: He Jiaqing being injured by Lu Xiaolan was purely a deception, and the Lu family had suffered an undeserved injustice. To outsiders, the Lu family had seemingly been cleared of the accusation this time. To insiders, whether it was an injustice or not was unimportant. The truly important thing was that the Xuansheng Red Lotus was no longer associated with the Lu family. From all indications, the Xuansheng Red Lotus was still with He Jiaqing, and Lu Xiaolan had become a scapegoat. Who could have guessed that the Xuansheng Red Lotus was with me? The eldest son of the He family was too attention-grabbing, which might have been one reason he couldn't personally bring the Red Lotus back to Puluozhou. Were there other reasons? Perhaps, but they weren't evident yet.

In addition, there was another crucial piece of news: He Haiqin had gone to Waizhou.

"Jiaqing, your father has gone to see you. You'd better entertain him well; your father can be considered your good brother too."

Li Banfeng put the newspaper aside and casually picked up an oil can.

His wife shivered. "Oh my husband, what day is it today that you suddenly want to oil me up?"

Li Banfeng chuckled good-naturedly. "Today is a good day, a particularly good one!"

"Oh, my husband, please let your little servant prepare. Don't be in such a hurry to apply the oil brush, your little servant hasn't yet..."

Amidst the hoarse sounds, steam rapidly spewed forth.

Hong Ying awoke from her sleep with a startled cry. "What happened? Have the enemy troops broken in?"

The gramophone gritted its teeth and replied, "They've... they've come in!"

At the Lu family mansion, Lu Yuanhai cursed loudly, "That bastard He Jiaqing, he orchestrated this scheme and turned our family upside down! Tomorrow, I'll have the newspaper publish more articles. Let's see how the He family can establish themselves in Puluozhou after this!"

Lu Yuanshan remained silent.

Monkey Qiu asked, "Did this news really come from the Old Master?"

Lu Yuanhai said, "How could it be false? Uncle Master's butler told me. Uncle Master personally recognized He Jiaqing!"

Monkey Qiu lit a cigarette, his expression quite solemn. "Why would the Old Master spread this news?"

Lu Yuanhai was surprised. "Uncle Qiu, do you suspect this news is false?"

Qiu Zhiheng shook his head, not speaking.

Lu Yuanshan said, "Regardless of whether the news is true or false, Uncle Master shouldn't have revealed it. The He family has always been at odds with us because of the Xuansheng Red Lotus. They've always suspected the Xuansheng Red Lotus was with Xiaolan, or even with us. This situation benefited Uncle Master. While we were constrained by the He family, Uncle Master had opportunities to cause trouble behind the scenes. Now that He Jiaqing's matter has come to light, our suspicions have been cleared, and Uncle Master no longer has a chance to turn the tables."

Lu Yuanhai suddenly understood. "According to you, Uncle Master had another intention in spreading the news."

Lu Yuanshan looked at Monkey Qiu.

Monkey Qiu was silent for a long time; he also couldn't fathom Lu Maoxian's true intentions. Lu Maoxian himself didn't want to reveal the matter, but he had no choice; it was the Saint's command.

The white-robed youth said, "Senior Brother, our Master made it very clear that He Jiaqing is extremely dangerous. He must not be allowed to establish himself in Puluozhou in the future. The more people who know about him, the better. We absolutely cannot tolerate him causing trouble in the shadows."

Lu Maoxian nodded. "I will follow Master's orders."

At Yuezhou Third Hospital, Zhou Changhong, lying in his hospital bed, sensed someone by his bedside and suddenly opened his eyes. He thought it was Xiao Zhenggong, but to his surprise, it was He Jiaqing standing beside him. Zhou Changhong let out a long breath, then tensed up again. He had told Xiao Zhenggong everything. Did He Jiaqing know about this?

He Jiaqing lowered his voice. "Brother, you've worked hard these past days. Here are your train ticket and travel permit back to Puluozhou. Once you're back, go hide with Miaoying for a few months. Try not to show your face for the next few days. Once things calm down, I'll have Miaoying arrange another residence for you in Greenwater City."

Zhou Changhong waved his hands repeatedly. "Why are you talking like this between brothers?"

Another person stood behind He Jiaqing, whom Zhou Changhong recognized: Zhu Junlong, the manager of Chashan Hotel.

"Changhong, stay with Junlong tonight. Tomorrow, he'll take you to the station."

He Jiaqing had prepared a set of casual clothes for Zhou Changhong. Zhou Changhong immediately changed and left the hospital with Zhu Junlong. Soon after they left, Big Head entered the hospital room.

"You just let him go like that?" Big Head was referring to Zhou Changhong.

He Jiaqing gave a wry smile. "He's my brother. If my brother wrongs me, I'll bear the burden myself, but I absolutely cannot wrong my brother."

Zhou Changhong followed Zhu Junlong to the hotel, where Zhu Junlong arranged a suite for him. Having impersonated He Jiaqing for such a long time, Zhou Changhong was exhausted. Zhu Junlong had intended to offer a few more instructions, but Zhou Changhong yawned and immediately burrowed into the covers, falling into a deep sleep.

At two in the morning, Zhou Changhong opened his eyes. He felt groggy, as if he needed to use the restroom. All the way, he had been carefully observing the location of every surveillance camera. There was one in the bedroom, one in the living room, and one by the door. Given his cultivation level, avoiding these three cameras wouldn't be difficult, but he needed to make some preparations. There were no cameras in the bathroom, making it suitable for his preparations.

He took out a disposable toothbrush cup and filled it with water. He used a disposable razor to cut his finger and squeezed blood into the cup. The blood diffused evenly in the clear water. Zhou Changhong drank half and left the other half in the bathroom. He returned to bed and continued sleeping.

Ten minutes later, the remaining half of the bloody water quickly evaporated, turning into a thin mist that filled the entire suite. An illusion appeared within the suite. From the outside, nothing seemed to have happened in the room; Zhou Changhong was still sleeping in bed. But in reality, Zhou Changhong had already left the room. His clothing and appearance had undergone a dramatic transformation, from a tall, handsome middle-aged man to a petite young woman.

He took the elevator to the first floor. The staff on duty in the hotel lobby were dozing. Zhou Changhong calmly walked out the hotel entrance, picked up a flyer from the ground, and hailed a taxi. After getting in, he asked the driver to take him to Yingshan Apartment. He had no money or phone on him. When he got out, he slipped the flyer to the driver. In the driver's eyes, he received a hundred-yuan bill. In those days, not many people paid with cash. The driver was wondering how to make change when he heard Zhou Changhong generously say, "Keep the change." The driver repeatedly thanked him and drove off.

Zhou Changhong entered the apartment building, went to room 208, and unlocked the digital lock. This was the escape route he had prepared for himself. Xiao Zhenggong had warned Zhou Changhong that he must inform him immediately after He Jiaqing returned, otherwise He Jiaqing would kill Zhou Changhong to silence him. With both He Jiaqing and Xiao Zhenggong in the picture, whom would Zhou Changhong trust? He trusted neither; he only trusted himself now. He had his travel permit and his train ticket. He had a brand-new identity that even He Jiaqing didn't know about. After returning to Puluozhou, he planned to disappear without a trace. His savings from the first half of his life were enough to sustain his lavish lifestyle. This apartment was one he had bought, fully equipped, but he had never really lived in it.

The bed was covered in dust. Zhou Changhong patted it a few times, only to find that more dust appeared with each pat. Strange, where was this dust coming from? It didn't seem to be from the bed; it was from his own hand. Zhou Changhong looked at his palm and saw that his right hand was splitting along the palm lines, with large amounts of dust spewing out from the cracks. Zhou Changhong was horrified. His legs gave out, and he fell to the ground. As he fell, he discovered that his legs were also splitting open. There was no blood in the wounds, only countless specks of dust. He tried to scream, but as soon as he opened his mouth, dust gushed out of his throat.

Half an hour later, only a pile of dust remained in the apartment, not even his clothes were left.

At Yuezhou Third Hospital, in the patient room, Old Wan checked the time and said to He Jiaqing, "He should be having his episode soon."

He Jiaqing asked, "Will it be cleaned up completely?"

"Don't worry, nothing will be left behind," Wan Jinxian said, looking at the vase beside the bed. "I'm curious to see what my fellow disciple looks like."